North-Western Office for Criminal Investigations in Transport Segment of Russia’s Investigation Committee says that its Saint-Petersburg Transport Investigation Department has initiated a criminal case on the fire onboard the Pyotr Tchaikovsky ship (owned by Doninturflot OJSC, Rostov-on-Don) moored at the Oktyabrskaya Embankment in Saint-Petersburg constituting an offence under Part 2 of Article 263 ot the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (improper operation of water transport which resulted inadvertently in the death of a person).
According to the investigation, the fire broke out in the engineer's cabin of MV Pyotr Tchaikovsky on 22 August 2019 at about 05:30, Moscow time. One crewmember (born in 1994) died from injuries caused by the fire while being transported to a medical facility.
Crime scene investigation team immediately appeared at the scene of the accident. Investigative activities are underway to establish facts, causes and circumstances of the case.
MV Pyotr Tchaikovsky is a Russian comfortable four-decker involved in river cruises for foreign tourists between Moscow and Saint-Petersburg from the end of May till the beginning of October. The ship is operated by Doninturflot OJSC (Rostov-on-Don). No sales of the Pyotr Tchaikovsky cruises are offered in Russia. The ship can accommodate 260 tourists.